


Secrets to Save You

by FallingApplesHurt



Series: Dancing and Fighting with Fire [1]
Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: 1.16 The Nether Update (Minecraft), Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Baseball, Family Dynamics, Family Feels, Gen, Potions, Sleepyboisinc - Freeform, Technoblade Needs a Hug (Video Blogging RPF), Technoblade-centric (Video Blogging RPF), The Nether (Minecraft), TommyInnit Needs a Hug (Video Blogging RPF)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-16
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-18 00:54:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,726
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29481033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FallingApplesHurt/pseuds/FallingApplesHurt
Summary: Life in their town wasn't easy, life in general wasn't easy, Techno knew that better then anyoneHe just wanted to keep his family safe and help provide for themBut when Tubbo is attacked by creatures from another world and needs medicine Techno does the only thing he can think of and tries to help get potion supplies by traveling to the Nether, which is illegalBut so are his weekly duels so what's the difference to him?
Relationships: Wilbur Soot & Technoblade & TommyInnit & Phil Watson
Series: Dancing and Fighting with Fire [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2165562
Comments: 12
Kudos: 98





	1. Withering Attacks

“Listen, all I’m saying is, your body is completely unnatural, I mean, who can bend like that?” Wilbur said, tipping his head to the side. 

It was a normal Friday so far, Techno and Wilbur were walking towards the second circle, on their way to pick up Tommy from Tubbo’s family stall.

“Maybe you’re the unnatural one,” Techno said, “Cause those tricks seem pretty natural to me, so, maybe it’s just you.”

“You’re the weird one,” Wilbur retorted, “I don’t know anyone else that can do that-”

“Just because you don’t know anyone else doesn’t mean that they aren’t out there. An old friend of mine-”

“Oh here you go again, back at it about ‘your old friends’, I’m starting to think that they are just imaginary!” Wilbur teased, Techno scoffed and shoved him lightly.

“So you’re projecting onto me now? Very classy Wilbur but I guess that’s to be expected of the Dirty Crime Boy now isn’t it-”

A thundering blare shook the ground, cutting Techno off, instinctively he reached for his sword only to remember that he left it at home. 

He shoved Wilbur into an alley, in a ditch attempt to protect him, whipping around to find the source of the noise. He saw smoke rising in the distance.

“That looks close to Tubbo’s stall,” Wilbur spoke from behind him, trailing off.

“Tommy,” Techno breathed. That kicked both of the boys back into action. Wilbur started running down the street, there were already some people streaking away from the smoke, screaming.

“We gotta go make sure he’s okay!”

“Wait!” Wilbur turned and saw Techno pulling at a creaky old fence gate.

“This way is much faster,” He forced the gate open, 

“Hope your climbing skills still hold up!” He said, pulling Wilbur into an alleyway, hoping to avoid any crowds or people in general trying to escape or see the commotion. 

Racing forwards, dodging past garbage cans and distressed stray animals, Wilbur called for Techno to slow down or at least say what direction they were going but Techno was on full auto pilot.

Running through a vacant lot, making sure not to step on a pothole he was starting to come up on a stonewall blocking the exit. Techno sped up, jumping onto a dumpster then propelling himself over the wall.

He landed hard but didn’t falter, immediately scanning the area, half of the market was in shambles.

Smoldering pieces of wood clung onto houses and stalls, shattered glass and rubble littered the street, merchandise and shredded cloth lay broken on the ground. Some shops were completely destroyed, pots and pans, and artwork was strewn about.

Guards had already made it there, some were ushring people away, others were taking notes of the damage, one was walking away with a rattling sack, and one was trying to keep a hold on Tommy.

“Let me go! I have to check on him! He-”

“Tommy!” Wilbur said, apparently having made it over the wall, he rushed forwards, trying to get in between the guard and his brother.

“Are you okay? What happened?” He asked, checking Tommy over for injuries, besides a nasty cut on his cheek he looked fine.

“One of the shop keepers had tried to open a portal to the nether inside their shop but something malfunctioned and it blew up, a few mobs got out but we have everything under control,” The guard stated, “But just to be safe you should get back to your homes-”

“What does this have to do with Tommy?” Wilbur asked sharply, putting a hand on his shoulder.

“This boy doesn’t have an ID so I was going to take him back to the outpost-”

“We are his guardians,” Techno cut in, chest tight, “He’s our little brother.”

“I need proof, does he have an ID?”

“It’s not with us,” Techno lied, staring at the guard, “He forgot it at home today when going to school but I can assure you he’s ours.”

“That isn’t eno-”

“Let go of my brother.” Techno didn’t back down, neither did the guard. After a few moments Wilbur cut through the silence.

“Sir, please, don’t you have something more important you could be doing? Just let us take our little brother,” He said, hopefully.

The guard pondered it for a moment before begrudgingly letting go of Tommy, “Fine but if I find him again without his ID he’s coming with me.” Then he stalked off.

Techno watched him as he went, making sure he didn’t try and grab Tommy again.

“Tommy what happened? Where is Tubbo and his family?” Wilbur asked, Tommy shifted his feet.

“So me and Tubbo were just hanging out when the wall of the shop blew in and a piece of wood hit me across the face-which doesn’t hurt ‘m fine Wilbur stop it- and Sparkles told us to hide in the back so we hid in the storage closet,” He gestured behind him at the ruined shop.

“Then we heard Sparkles shout, Tubbo started panicking and ran out, yelling about the Captain and he picked up a sword and it was so cool! He started fending off these creepy black skeletons when-” He stopped suddenly, hand starting to shake.

“Tommy?” Wilbur prompted after a minute, Tommy swallowed, blinking rapidly.

“Then the skeleton slashed him across the chest and he screamed, Sparkles showed up and knocked its head off but he grabbed Tubbo and ran off, saying something about infection but, I saw the wound and- and- it looked so bad.” He broke off, shoulders hunching in. Techno felt a lump in his throat.

Wilbur wrapped his arms around him as Tommy started to shake, “It-it was bleeding a lot and-and the edge were turning black then that guard came up and asked for my ID but all I could think about was how Tubbo was wearing his favorite shirt but now it’s ruined and-”

Wilbur hushed him gently, tightening his hold. “Tubbo will be okay, don’t you worry Tommy, he’s a strong lad, he’ll be just fine,”

“But he-”

“You just told me that he took on a monster all by himself, I’m sure that he’ll heal in no time and that you guys will be playing baseball and getting up to stupid shit.”

Tommy laughed wetly, “I wanna do stupid shit with him,” 

Wilbur didn’t chastize him on swearing, neither did Techno. Techno placed a hand on Tommy’s head, messing with his hair absentmindedly.

He hadn’t seen the monster but he already knew it was a Wither Skeleton and that Tubbo most likely had Withering. Tubbo was a strong kid but not many people survived that poison.

But he couldn’t tell Tommy that.

Not right now.

So he didn’t, he just stood there, playing with his hair until Wilbur pulled away, “I know you’re worried about Tubbo but Phil is probably worried about us, so we should head home and get that cut taken care of.”  
Tommy nodded. 

Before leaving Wilbur walked back into the shop, grabbing Tommy’s backpack off the floor, dusting off dirt and wood chippings. 

As he came back out, Techno grabbed his shoulder, “I’m going to go check on Tubbo,” He whispered, Wilbur nodded heading down the street with Tommy in tow, trying to get Tommy to tell him about school.

Techno waited till they were rounding the corner before jogging down the street, looking for a medical tent, they were too far from the actual hospital for Tubbo so they had to be close by.

He kept running until a small white tent with red hearts on the flaps came into view, outside was the Captain himself, pacing back and forth. Techno skidded to a halt next to him.

“Tommy told me what happened, how is Tubbo? Did he get withering?” Techno tried not to sound desperate, hoping that it was just a little cut and maybe Tommy had just seen things strangely during the whole fascisco.

The Captain sighed, “Three deep claw marks down his chest, he’s lost some blood and has withering.”

Techno’s heart dropped, “What about the milk remedy? That has to do something, I bet if you administer it quickly it’ll draw the poison ou-”

“It’s not just that, we are doing the milk remedy but the cuts are too deep, he probably won’t survive the shock of it all, the poison, or the infections from the gashes.” 

The Captain’s hands were clenched at his sides, shaking, his eyes were tired.

“It’s a shame I can’t make potions, I know how to but I don’t have the resources to get the materials, or hell even buy one myself but alchemy is a rich man's game.” His voice was bitter and brittle.

Techno frowned, he wasn’t going to give up that easily. Maybe Tubbo would beat the odds and survive it, maybe he could steal a potion? No that was too risky, potions were kept in high security places. Or he could try and get into the Nether himself- Then it hit him.

He needed to visit a certain blue bastard.

“Captain, you know how to make potions?” He asked, 

“And all you would need are the materials?”

The Caption nodded, “Yes, I just need some blaze rods and powder and some nether wart. I have everything else.”

“So if I could get you that then you would be able to save Tubbo?” 

“Hopefully yes,” The Captain said hesitantly, “Techno what are you planning?”

“Nothing,” Techno said, “Nothing at all, I just have to talk to a friend.” He turned to leave then spun on his heels.  
“By the way, we never had this conversation.” 

Then he started off towards the fourth ring to talk to Skeppy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have a good period of existence in the universe!


	2. Into Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tubbo is dying and his only hope is Techno getting supplies for a healing potion in the Nether
> 
> But first Techno has to talk to Skeppy

Techno always found the fourth ring to be somewhat depressing, it was dirty and broken, the sidewalks and roads eventually morphed into dusty gravel than dirt. 

The houses were small and in shabbley, garbage and junk crowded parts of the road and the fence that was supposed to separate the rings from the forest had kinks and rips in the mesh. 

Nature still managed to push through, bushes hiding yards from view, flower pots on window sills.

Even with the fence keeping the forest out there were actual trees in the fourth ring, some leaned over the fence, vines creating cover along the edge. 

The people seemed happy at least, he passed a rinky treehouse, filled with shrieks and giggles. An open nearby window let a soft melody drift out into the street. 

He would have appreciated it more if his head didn’t feel like it was about to explode as he rushed down the street  
Skeppy lived in a little scrappy house, one of the windows was busted and the door creaks every time it’s touched but it was a good cover for what was underneath. 

Skeppy had hollowed out a huge space underneath that was hidden by chests, it was basically a secret basement. It had mini farms and stolen goods, Skeppy was good with his hand and could make just about anything. He’s been running a racket.

Techno knocked lightly on the door, he heard shuffling inside then the door squeaked open and Skeppy poked his head out, he had redstone dust against his cheeks.

“Who- Oh hey Techno, what’s up?”

“I need help,”

“Never a dull moment with you, what do you need?”

“I need to go to the Nether.” Skeppy raised an eyebrow.

“Why?”

“Did you hear about the attack in the second ring?” Techno asked, Skeppy nodded, “My little brother’s friend got withering poison and I need to get potion supplies.”

Skeppy’s face dropped, he opened the door all the way, “Come inside,” Techno stepped inside and found himself sitting at Skeppy’s shitty table, tapping his fingers nervously along the scratched wood.

“What all do you need?” Skeppy asked, digging through one of the chests along his wall.

“Nether wart, blaze rods, and blaze powder,” Techno listed off, hoping the Captain hadn’t forgotten anything.

“I only have nether wart,” Skeppy said.

“Do you know of anywhere else I could get it?”

“Without stealing or for a reasonable price? No, sorry man.”

Techno groaned, jamming a hand in his hair, “I need to get this stuff, Tubbo’s life depends on it.”

“I still might have something that could help- would you be willing to go to the nether?”

Techno blinked, would he? He wanted to help Tubbo but there he had only read about the Nether and it’s creatures years ago, a hellish, hot, burning landscape with danger at every turn. 

The mobs were loud and explosive, some could fly and shoot fire, or that could actively hide and breathe in lava. He didn’t want to go in there, he had no idea how to handle, even with all of his training.

Then he remembered Tommy.

He remembered that Tommy was going to lose his best friend if he didn’t do this. Tubbo had his whole life ahead of him, he was a smart kid and Techno knew he’d go far and do great things, both of them would. Those two had been side by side for years, they were a part of each other. It was never just Tommy or Tubbo, it was Tommy and Tubbo.

He couldn’t do that to them.

‘You could die!’’ The other side of him reasoned, he shoved it aside. He had to do this, for Tommy and Tubbo.

“Yes,” He rasped, Skeppy grinned then walked over to his mattress, pulling a bag out from underneath it. He tossed it at Techno, who dumped it’s contents onto the table, papers and pens scattering everywhere. He grabbed one of the folded pieces and opened it, revealing a detailed map with bullet points along the side and in the margins.

“If you’d let me explain before dumping all of my stuff everywhere, these are maps around the Nether, one to get a portal I have in the woods, one on how to get to different regions of the Nether and notes on what to do or avoid. Do you know how to navigate the Nether?”

“Not in the slightest,”

Skeppy laughed, “You’re so bad-”

“Just tell me what to do-”

“Let me talk, so when you first get in there don’t step on anything that glows, it’ll either burn you or break. Just try and stay anyways from any mobs, you’ll see a lot of these pig things but as long as you have something that looks like gold on you then you should be fine.”

Skeppy shoved the papers around until he found a yellow pin.

“Wear that on your shirt and they should leave you alone. For the rest of it, just follow the map and try not to get set on fire.”

“What about the fortress?”

“I’ve been in the fortress once before and it was absolutely terrifying, the blazes had these weird sticks that fly all around them and they will spit fire at you so watch out, they usually are in their own little boxy areas. The only real advice I have is try not to get set on fire.” Skeppy said, shrugging. 

Techno sighed, shoving the papers back into the bag.

“Thank you-”

“Oh, you’ll need this for the portal, to start it up,” He handed Techno a piece of metal and flint, tied together, Techno pocketed it.

“Thank you-”

“It’s whatever- oh wait let me grab the nether wart,” 

Skeppy jumped up, pushing one of his chests to the side, climbing down a rusty ladder as Techno continued to clean up the maps. Skeppy emerged from the gap and tossed a small pouch at him.

“There you go,” He paused, “Good luck, and you know the drill, you never got that stuff from me.” Skeppy grinned, Techno snorted, shouldering the bag and opening the door.

“Of course, I’ve just met you, it’s Skippy right?”

“Haha, very funny-”

“Later Skippy-”

“Techno-” Skeppy’s retort was cut off by Techno closing the door. He didn’t know much about the Nether but he knew he needed a weapon so he headed back to the apartment to get his sword.

The walk back was uneventful though there seemed to be less people, and guards milling about. Techno chalked it up to the commotion in the second ring.

Coming into his neighborhood, he climbed up the rusty stairs to their apartment and opened the door. Inside Wilbur and Tommy were passed out on the couch, a bandaid was on Tommy’s cheek and he didn’t see Phil anywhere, the coast was clear. 

Techno slipped into his and Phil’s room, putting the bag of nether wart under his mattress, he grabbed his sword from under his bed. Running his fingers along the sheath to clear the dust then adjusted it to his belt.

“Where are you going?”

Techno turned and saw Phil in the doorway, he froze. He couldn’t tell Phil he was trying to sneak into the Nether, he didn’t even like Techno going to the duels so him walking into what was essentially hell would have been a no go.

“Tommy told me what happened, is this for Tubbo?”  
Techno nodded, he didn’t like lying to Phil but he didn’t want to worry him either, well, more then he already did.

Phil sighed, “You aren’t gonna be able to earn enough money for hospital care in one night,”

Techno blinked, realizing he had an out, he didn’t have to tell Phil what he was doing, not directly, just tell him that he was going to help Tubbo.

He swallowed, “I can try,”

Phil looked down, after a moment he said, “Be careful, okay?”

Techno nodded, he stepped forwards and placed a hand on Phil’s shoulder, Phil put his hand on top of Techno’s. 

“Of course.” Then as quietly as possible, he walked out of their apartment and back towards the fourth ring, dodging the few guards and walking along the fence until he found a big enough opening.

He had only been in the forest once before when he was younger and it had not gone well. He shuddered and pushed away the memories, pulling out the map of the forest, and started in.

The edge of the forest had garbage and junk littered around, a few animals poking at it or climbing on the bits of metal sticking out of the dirt. Further in however the garbage started to recede and foliage looked more lush, the tree rustled as squirrels ran along the branches.

Techno pushed vines out of the way looking at the trees for Skeppy’s landmark, at the heart carved into the roots, turn left and keep going until you reach the mountain.

He scanned the surrounding trees, hoping to see the mark but coming up short. He walked further, stepping over roots and flowers, trying not to disturb the foliage. It wasn’t night yet but if monsters were nearby then he didn’t want to alert them.

Techno wandered a bit further until he looked down and saw a little heart carved into the root of a sycamore tree, after checking the directions again he turned left and continued on. 

The terrain started to get rockier and steeper, tree roots bent out and tangled and more noticeable then ever. The dirt changed into stone as he approached a small craggly mountain, checking over the map again he couldn’t find any other directions besides ‘look for the cave thing- you know what you mean’.

Of course Skeppy would write something like that.  
Techno looked up and down the mountain, trying to see if there were any openings or caves when he spotted one halfway to the peak, groaning, he started up the cliff side, not bothering to avoid any plants in his path this time.

This turned out to be a bad idea because he stepped on a patch of leaves and vines and immediately fell into a hole. He lay flat on the ground for a moment, contemplating his life.

After he finished his internal scream fest he pushed himself to his feet to try and find a way out of this stupid hole, only to look up and see an inky wine colored arch in the wall and a nearby chest covered in dust.

Yeah this seemed like something Skeppy would make.  
Techno got up, dusted himself off, then checked the chest, finding it was empty besides a thing of rope which he left alone. 

He pulled out the flint and steel and spent the better part of ten minutes trying to light the damn portal before finally getting a solid spark.

The portal shook then violet tendrils crept from the edges and twinged together. The portal swirled loudly and Techno threw himself in before he could change his mind.

He stumbled into what he could only define as literal hell.  
The air was hot and somewhat sticky, everything was either bright orange or a dark red. Monsters shuffled around, grunting and groaning, a high pitched wail sounded in the distance. 

Lava dripped from the ceiling and pooled into sluggishly moving puddles, he could feel it’s heat even though he was a safe distance away.

He wanted to get out of there as soon as possible, digging through his bag he found the nether map and started jogging deeper into the rough red realm.

Techno followed Skeppy’s landmarks, a really gross looking blue tree, a deep hole that led directly to a lava pit, and avoided a very dark and foggy biome then continued straight. 

He was starting to give up hope when finally he saw a large dark brick structure over a sea of lava, he looked around and saw the path Skeppy used to get to it. A little tunnel in the rock that led to a part of the fortress that was stuck in the wall.

He hopped onto the top of the structure and immediately felt uneasy, like someone was watching him. He walked along the top until he found an opening and climbed in, drawing his sword, the halls were empty but you could never be too careful.

Techno wandered down the hall until it opened into what seemed like a courtyard of sorts. Broken and rotted creatures walked along the railings of the fortress, unbothered by his presence. A breathy hiss drew is attention, a blaze, or what he thought was, hissed at him.

The blaze chucked a fireball at him, he dodged back then ran forwards, slashing at the monster. He caught it once before it flew up, screeching, Techno dodged another attack and swung in an arch, clipping the blaze. It howled again before bursting into smoke, dropping two merigold rods on the brick.

Techno shoved them into his bag, not sure on how many to get, on one hand he wanted to leave but if it wasn’t enough then the whole trip would have been pointless and they would lose Tubbo.

A breathy hiss made the decision for him as he ducked away from a fireball, then charged at the approaching monster, it was better to over prepare then under prepare.

Techno fell into a rhythm of sorts, slashing, stabbing, and dodging. The thing about the duels was that they made him feel alive but also dull, it was the same thing almost every time; some dumbass with a cocky attitude and little to no sword skills, it was easy.

Fighting the blazes was different, they were unpredictable- chaotic, deadly.

They didn’t have any rules to play by, only going on pure instinct, not bothering to try and banter to entertain an audience. 

It was new, fresh, dangerous, he got used to the fire just barely licking at his skin. It got his heart pounding and lungs aching- it was almost fun.

After what felt like seconds but had to have been at least an hour he had 14 blaze rods. He shoved them into his bag then ditched the fortress, rushing back out the way he came. He ran until he reached the blue biome again and stopped to break.

While waiting he saw a lanky black figure standing by one of the trees, he squinted at it. It looked familiar, Techno knew he had read about it before but he couldn’t place his finger on it.

Then the figure started screeching and ran at him. Techno jumped then lashed out and got a solid blow but was thrown back against a tree, shaking his head he slashed the creature across the chest then stabbed it. 

It’s jaw unhinged, it howled, staring at him with wide purple eyes then disappearing in a puff of smoke, leaving behind a blue ball.

Techno picked up the ball, looking it over, after realizing he didn’t know what it was and therefore probably had no use to him, he chucked it behind him and started back towards the portal.

Only to be farther back then before, he yelped, looking around frantically. What the hell just happened?

Then it hit him. He remembered reading about Endermen and their strange relationships and reactions to humans. He also remembered Tommy telling him about these weird, rare blue balls that they dropped that could teleport you if you threw them; he had learned about it in school and wouldn’t stop talking about it for a week. 

He realized those could be pretty useful, especially in the Nether, then set out to look for more of the lanky creatures.

After about an hour he had fought multiple but only managed to get three pearls but that was still better then nothing. He slipped them into a pouch on his belt and continued back to the portal.

Once out of the Nether, after getting over the wave of nausea, he used the rope in the chest and climbed out of the hole. After sloppily covering it up he ran back through the forest, to the rings. 

The moon was starting to dip towards the trees and he realized he had been in there all night and that would make the trade off harder but Techno still had time.

He climbed back through the hole in the fence and headed towards the Captains house, cutting through yards and possibly trampling a few flowers and other things. 

He made a pit stop at his apartment to grab the Nether wart and dropped off his sword. He ran to the edge of the second ring and skidded to a halt outside the house.

Techno knocked, quietly but quickly, until a scruffy looking Captain opened the door.

“Techno?” He asked, “What are you doing here-”

“Let me in, I got the stuff,” Techno said, pushing his way in, the Captain closed the door.

“What stuff?”

“The potion supplies,” Techno set his bag down on the table, the Captain’s eyes widened.

“Wait you actually got it? How?”

“Don’t ask questions you aren’t prepared to hear the answers too, just take them.” Techno set the pouch of nether wart on the table then proceeded to dump out all of the blaze rods.

The Captain didn’t move, he stood there staring at the materials.

“You got everything else?”

The Captain nodded and Techno smiled, heading towards the door, he was exhausted.

“Good to know, I hope to see Tubbo soon.” Then he left, closing the door, heading back home, where he drank half of his body weight in water then collapsed into bed.

He hadn’t heard much from anyone in Tubbo’s family for three days. Everyday Tommy would come home from school and report that Tubbo was still missing. 

Techno would bite his lip and hope that the Captain would be able to make the potion. He had avoided stopping by to cause less suspicion. 

On the fourth day, a Saturday, someone knocked on the door. Tommy was in his room, Phil was reading in the living room, and Wilbur refused to get off the couch so Techno answered the door.

Tubbo stood there, looking up at him holding a plate of cookies and a folded note.

“Oh! Hey Techno! These are for you guys, they are from my mom!” Tubbo said, pushing the plate closer, “And the note is for you, from my dad.” He added quietly, “Said it’s a secret.”

Techno took the plate, smiling softly, after finally finding his voice; “Thank you, come on in for a minute.” And pulled Tubbo inside. He set the plate down and pocketed the note.

“Hey Tommy, come here for a second!”

“What is it?”

“Just come here!”

Tommy’s door opened and he stepped out, “What’s the big idea-” He trailed off upon seeing Tubbo, who waved.

Tommy stood there, in shock before launching himself across the room and bowling into the other boy, shrieking.

“Tubbo! You’re okay!” He said, wrapping his arms around the other.

“Yeah!”

Wilbur got up from the couch and Phil followed to greet Tubbo, ruffling his hair, and telling him they were so happy he was okay.

After the room had settled, Tommy immediately drug Tubbo into his room, asking him what the poison was like. Phil warned Tommy to be careful in case Tubbo was still healing and Wilbur warned Tommy to not touch any of his stuff.

Techno stepped away and looked at the note.

‘Please bring Tubbo home tonight then talk to me- Captain’

The vagueness of the note made his stomach turn, the whole rest of the day Techno worried about stupid things like ‘what if the potion only worked temporarily and Tubbo was still in danger? What if a guard saw him doing all the very illegal actions he did last night? What if Sparkles reported him?’ 

When Tubbo said he had to get going, Techno offered to walk him back, then still proceeded to worry the whole rest of the way there.

He followed Tubbo inside his house when the Captain pulled him into the kitchen and gave him a hug.

Techno stood shocked, blinking, before awkwardly returning it. The Captain had never really seemed to like Techno, he was never mean, just always seemed on edge. The Captain pulled away, eyes shining.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you,” He said, “You saved my son's life, without that potion he would have died- thank you.”

“It was no problem,” Techno said, scratching the back of his neck nervously, “I care about the kid a lot and he helps keep Tommy out of trouble, so it was the least I could do.”

“The least- oh nevermind, I still want to thank you for risking your life for him and ask you a question.”

Techno nodded hesiatinely.

“Does anyone else know about what you did?”

“Just one other person, but trust me he won’t tell anyone.”

“Okay, I had an idea, potions are in high demand so I was wondering if you wanted to do a little back alley selling,”

Techno raised an eyebrow, “How so?”

“You would get the ingredients, I would make the potions and sell them off then we would split the money. And I know that we aren’t that close but this could help both of our families, if you are willing to.” The Captain offered his hand

Techno considered it, “I don’t want to be doing any of the hand offs-”

“No that would be all me, all you have to get is gather the ingredients!” He assured, Techno sighed then took the Captain’s hand.

“It’s a plan.”


	3. Rising Restlessness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tommy plays baseball, Techno has a few issues in the Nether and his family gets increasingly worried

It had been three weeks since Techno and the Captain had started working together and Techno was exhausted. It wasn’t constant trips to the Nether, he usually only had to go twice a week. It was gathering supplies late into the night and the constant anxiety that they were going to be caught.

He had to convince himself that the guards weren’t giving him weird looks, that the people in the fourth ring weren’t going to snitch on him, that Tommy wasn’t going to snoop in his room and find the maps, that there weren’t hundreds of eyes always on him.

His nerves were fried, and his family could tell. Phil resting a hand on his shoulder, Wilbur’s worried glances, Tommy straight up telling him he looked tired- or in his words; “You look like shit,” but was obviously concerned. He said that Techno should ‘relax’.

Techno guessed that was why when Tommy had a school day off, he drug Techno to a baseball field with his classmates. He wasn’t really interested in sports but after Phil said someone should be keeping an eye on Tommy, he agreed to go.

Tubbo was there, looking healthy and happy, as he waved at Tommy from the metal bleachers.

Techno sat down next to him, looking over the field, it was a dusty little square with four pieces of metal sticking out of the ground, kids scrambling to random positions on the field, Tommy was in the middle of the field, casually tossing a ball.

“Why aren’t you playing with the others?” Techno asked Tubbo, who deflated slightly.

“My dad wants me to take it easy, I’m lucky he even let me out of the house today.”

Techno nodded, “Makes sense, how’s your chest?”

“It aches a little but other than that I’m fine.” 

They sat in a comfortable silence while more kids trickled onto the field. Techno watched Tommy throw a ball at a kid with a bat.

“What is Tommy doing?” He asked.

“He’s the pitcher,”

“What’s that?”

“He throws the ball for the batter,” Tubbo explained, pointing to someone standing across from Tommy.

“Uh huh- and what’s the batter?”

Tubbo laughed, “Do you not know what Baseball is? Or how to play it?”

“Uhhhh, no,” Techno raised an eyebrow.

“I forgot you’re really weird, I’ll explain the game, so-”

“Wait hang on-”

“So there are two teams,” Tubbo continued, ignoring Techno’s interjection. Tubbo described the different teams and the field positions and point systems, Techno didn't get a lot of it but he appreciated the thought.

He watched as Tommy reared back and threw the ball with force Techno didn’t know he possessed. The batter missed and the person behind him called out, “Strike one!” and tossed the ball back to Tommy.

Techno watched as Tommy made the other boy strike out three times, he made it look easy.

“He’s really good at this,” Techno commented.

Tubbo nodded, “Oh yeah he’s our best pitcher, can’t bat for shit but he’s got a good right hook,” He paused, “Good left hook too.”

Techno chuckled, watching the game continue, other kids slapping Tommy on the back. Occasionally he’d look over to the bleachers, Tubbo would cheer and Techno would give a thumbs up.

After about an hour Tommy jogged up onto the bleachers, sweat beaded on his forehead.

“What’d you think?” Tommy asked, Techno shrugged.

“Decent.”

Tommy looked elated.

“You should come down and play with us, we could use another player.” Tommy gestured to the field, Techno shook his head.

“I don’t play sports-”

“Yeah yeah I remember, just figured it was worth a try.” Tommy said, jumping down the bleachers, “Last time you tried you couldn’t get it and kept making that little grr noise.”

“I do not make a ‘grr’ noise!” He shot back but Tommy was either too far to hear or just didn’t care. Techno guessed the latter.

“You do,” Tubbo said, nudging his shoulder, “I’ve heard it.”

“Lies,” Techno said, putting his hand in front of Tubbo’s face, as Tubbo laughed.

They watched Tommy for another hour before the game started to dissolve and they went back to their apartment, Tommy telling them more about pitching.

Later that night Techno went back to the Nether. When he had dropped Tubbo off, Captain slipped him a note saying that he was running low on gold and knew there were small pockets in the Nether.

Techno didn’t have anything to really mine it with but he did have a rusty trowel and the netherrack was softer then stone so it might work.

Techno moved quickly and slightly to the portal, heart in his throat the whole time. He was hoping that after going to the Nether a few times that it would lessen his anxiety but it hadn’t, in fact it felt worse. He pushed the feeling down, he had a job to do.

After lighting the portal and stepping through Techno headed west, he remembered seeing a large pocket gold in that direction. On the way he grabbed a few blue fungi for Skeppy, he didn’t ask for any but Techno knew he’d find some use for it.

Once he spotted the sparkling gold snippets he knelt down and pulled out the trowel. He started chipping away at the netherrack, ripping small hunks from the rock and tucking it into the pouch on his belt. Captain said he didn’t need a lot so Techno didn’t want to stay for too long but he also didn’t want to come back.

He was picking over the vein one last time when he heard a howl of rage. He whipped around, grabbing his sword to see a group of Piglins charging at him all with raised swords and cocked crossbows. He realized he couldn’t take them all at once, quickly pocketing the trowel, he turned and started sprinting.

More Piglins came tearing at him from other directions, panic rising in his chest, Techno ran into the blue forest in hopes to lose them. He didn’t want to lead them to the portal, not knowing if they could cross through or not.

The roots of the fungi ripped and pulled at his ankles and Techno almost tripped multiple times while the Piglins barely seemed to notice them. After realizing he probably wouldn’t be able to outrun them, Techno started looking for something to climb onto, to get the high ground.

Only to then trip and faceplant into the netherrack.

Techno rolled away just in time to barely miss a golden sword to the back, taking out his own sword, Techno kicked the closest Piglin away, and scrambled to his feet.

An arrow shot past his ear as he lashed out at another Piglin then clashed swords with another. There was no point in holding out and letting more Piglins gather so he looked for escape options. 

He could try climbing up one of the trees but he could still be shot. There was a huge, sharp, slope to his left so that was out of the question. The forest seemed to thicken more to the right and the only way he knew to get back to the portal was back through a crater. Trying to get a look at his escape Techno realised an issue.

There was a huge line of fire blocking his path, it looked like a ghast and piglin got into a fight, debris still littered around.  
Mentally recapping his options were 1) try to get up the slope and most likely fall or get shot into a horde of Piglins. 2) He could try the fungi forest and get cornered again or 3) he could run through fire. 

Great.

The fire was his best option but he’d really rather not be set on fire today.

The choice was made for him as he disarmed a Piglin and stepped back, one managed to jump forwards and slash his shin.

Sharp stinging pierced his skin, adrenaline overriding his indecision, Techno turned and rushed through the fire, trying to ignore the heat licking at his legs. He weaved through the forest and under rocky overhangs and didn’t stop until he dove through the portal and knocked out the purple.

He collapsed on the ground, breathing heavily. That was too close for comfort, he didn’t even know what he did that made the Piglins so upset, he was wearing the pin!

The adrenaline was wearing off and Techno could feel pain searing up his leg, the ends of his pants were scorched and ashy and the skin around was red and swelling. The cut on his shin was long and sallow, slowly oozing blood. 

There was nothing he could do, Techno sighed, twisting his pant leg to try and cover the wound. He stood up, brushing dust and dirt off his clothes and face, and climbed out of the cave.

He shuffled through the fourth ring, making a pit stop at Skeppy’s and throwing the fungi through the hole in his broken window then headed towards the Captain’s house.

Techno tried to walk as normally as possible to avoid stares from the people who were just trying to get to work. He managed to get to the Captain house and dropped the nuggets of gold into a flower pot by the door then set off home.

He didn’t know the time but by judging the amount of people out in the streets Tommy would be at school and Phil, hopefully Wilbur too, would be at work.

Techno hobbled into their apartment and felt a rush of relief upon seeing the place empty. After stashing his sword under his bed he went into the bathroom and pulled out the first aid kit. He gingerly cleaned the wound and wrapped a bandage around it.

He was trying to push off sleep so he started on housework, dishes, laundry, and tidying up. He stitched up the ends of his pants then gave in to the tiredness and fell asleep on the couch.

Someone prodded at his shoulder, rubbing at his eyes he saw Wilbur leaning over him, “Oh thank god you’re alive.”

Techno sat up, blinking the sleep from his eyes, “Uh, yeah? Why wouldn’t I be?”

Wilbur licked his lips nervously, “We were all pretty worried when you weren’t home this morning,” He trailed off, Techno looked away, he forgot they assumed he was going to duel.

“I-I’m, uh, sorry about that, I’m fine.”

“It’s alright,” Wilbur paused, “but are you okay? You’ve been really, uh, weird lately.”

“What?”

“You’ve look like a wreck, I haven’t seen you like this in years-”

“I’m fine Wilbur, don’t worry about it.” Techno said flippantly.

“Okay but whenever you say to ‘not worry about something’ that makes me worry more.” 

“That sounds like a you problem.”

Wilbur let out a defeated laugh, pinching the bridge of his nose, “Should’ve known you were just going to blow off the question.”

Techno raised an eyebrow, “Okay, uh rude.”

“Yeah I’m definitely being the rude one here-”

“You kind of are-”

“I’m trying to make sure you are okay and you’re being an asshole but that’s normal for you so I don’t know why I’m surprised.”

“I told you I’m fine, you’re the one whos being an asshole.”

Wilbur shook his head, “We have been worried about you for weeks! Those damn duels are becoming more and more frequent and you have been acting like a paranoid cunt!”

“Why are you all so hung up on the duels?” Techno glared at Wilbur, rising to his feet. He was trying to fight the rising panic in his chest, he didn’t trust himself to not slip up about the Nether. “I’ve been doing them forever but now everyone has a problem with it?”

“We’ve always had a problem with them! Techno you could get seriously injured! We just let you go on with them because you’re so damn stubborn!”

“Well thank you so much for allowing me to provide for you guys, its a fucking wonderful opportunity.” Techno threw his hands out to the sides, Wilbur sighed again.

“It’s impossible to have a conversation with you-”

“With me? You change the subject every minute, I’m getting whiplash.”

Wilbur groaned, “That’s it, I’m too tired for this, I tried to care but no it’s over. You win. You fucking win.” He stalked off to his room and closed the door much too loudly.

Techno flopped back down onto the couch, rubbing his temples, that was bad. He didn’t want to fight with Wilbur but he didn’t know what to do.

So he sat there, staring at the wall and trying to formulate some type of apology but kept coming up short. He got up and tried to start something for dinner, willing Tommy or Phil to get home and fill the quiet of the apartment.

They had a box of pasta and a can of beans, Techno opted for the pasta and started boiling water. Phil came home a little while later, talking about his weird day at work and Techno was thankful for the background noise, the anxiety adrenaline was starting to wear off when Techno remembered Tommy.

He looked at the clock, 6:34, Tommy should have been home by now. Logically he knew Tommy was probably just running late but all he could think about was a guard grabbing him off the side of the road and shipping him off to god knows where.

Techno tapped his fingers nervously against the counter, “Did Tommy say he was going to be late?”

Phil shook his head, “I didn’t hear him say anything like that, he’s probably fine though, you know how he is.”

Techno nodded, biting the inside of his cheek. He couldn’t stop thinking about Tommy, he could be kidnapped or hurt, waiting for someone to come help him. It hit Techno that some of the guards  
could’ve taken him and his blood ran cold. They could’ve grabbed Tommy just like they grabbed him and he would just be gone, they wouldn’t be able to find him again.

What if someone noticed him sneaking out, connected the dots, and grabbed Tommy as a hostage. They could try to trade him for money or resources, they could report everything-

“-hno? Techno!” Techno was knocked back into reality with pots clattering and fire sizzling filing his ears. The pot was boiling over. He rushed to take off the lid and turn off the heat.

“Techno, are you okay?” Phil placed a hand on his shoulder.

“I’m worried about Tommy, he should be here by now.” Techno couldn’t stop his hand from shaking.

“Do you want to go look for him? We’d probably intercept him on his way home from Tubbo’s.” 

Techno nodded, he grabbed his shoes as Phil called for Wilbur. He whipped the door open and rushed down the rusty stairs, Phil and Wilbur trying to catch up. 

It was cold out, the sun was setting and the wind was sharp and strong. Techno moved quickly along Tommy’s normal route, eyes flickering frantically from building to building, he tried to pick up on every sound and movement.

Wilbur came up behind him,“Techno, calm down. He’s probably just running late.”

“What if he’s not?” Techno didn’t voice his other thoughts and continued down the street, getting increasingly worried.

They had been looking for 10 minutes and it was getting darker which put Phil on edge too.

“He should’ve a least started home by now.”

“You guys worry too much, Tommy is a smart kid, he’s fine.” Wilbur said reassuringly, Techno could hear the nervousness pricking in his voice.

Techno heard something crash up ahead and ran, skidding to a halt to see Tommy trying to set someone’s trash can up straight. He ran up to him, looking him over.

“Are you okay?”

“Uh, yeah?” Tommy gave him a weird look, “Why wouldn’t I be?”

Techno couldn't express in words how much he wanted to simultaneously slap the kid upside the head and hold him and never let go.

“I was just worried, you were late and it’s dark out.” He tried to coat his words with his normal nonchantelness. 

Wilbur and Phil came up behind him, visibly relaxing when they spotted Tommy. 

“See! I told you guys he was fine, you were worried for nothing.” Wilbur said, satisfied. 

“You guys were that worried about me?” Tommy asked, a smile tugging at his lips. 

“It was mainly Techno-” Wilbur was cut off as Techno elbowed him.

“Aww, well, sorry I didn’t mean to worry you. I was trying to take a shortcut through the alleys and got lost.”

Techno sighed, Tommy was fine. He wasn’t trying to escape anyone, he wasn’t hurt, everything was fine. He could feel Tommy’s eyes bore into him but he ignored it as Wilbur walked forwards, messing up Tommy’s hair and putting an arm around his shoulders.

“Let's get back home, hopefully Techno didn’t burn dinner.”

“Oh fuck the pasta-” Techno was okay with ignoring his and Wilbur’s argument, he was too drained to want to fight anymore tonight.

Everything seemed alright except Tommy was oddly quiet the rest of the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments are appreciated even though I am posting every chapter at once,,,
> 
> Have a good period of existence in the universe!!


	4. Falling Towards Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tommy is worried about his brother and decides to try and find out what is bothering him but he might've bitten off more then he can chew

Tommy didn’t know a lot about Techno but he did know something was wrong. 

His whole demeanor seemed nervous, restless, almost skittish, and Techno was not skittish. He was jumpy and tense, randomly whipping around as if he was afraid of someone following them. Wilbur had accidentally bumped into him and Techno almost jumped out of his skin.

Something was bothering him to say the least and Tommy decided he was going to figure it out, no matter what, which was definitely easier said than done.

Tommy had been trying so hard to formulate a plan that he started to school only to remember half way there that he forgot his homework. Turning on his heels he ran back to the apartment, backpack bouncing against his back as his feet pounded against the cracking pavement.

He came close to the apartment building, his chest ached as he sucked down air, iron coating his tongue, when he heard the familiar creak of their rusty staircase. He stepped back, pressing himself against the wall and watched as Techno tread down the stairs, sword at his side.

Tommy bit the inside of his cheek, Techno didn’t normally go out to duels during the day but he had heard Wilbur bitch about it so he must be headed there. This was perfect.

He could kill two birds with one stone, find out where Techno was going for the duels then if he knew where they were then he could go to them too and start helping out the family!

In the back of his mind he knew he should grab his homework and run back to school, he could make it before the bell, and be a good kid but the overwhelming curiosity and the familiar tendrils of guilt was too much. 

He slowly slid off his backpack, watching Techno’s every move as he started down the street. He shoved his bag under a dumpster and hoped it wouldn’t be stolen then started to creep after his brother.

Tommy thought he didn’t know a lot about Techno but he did, he had picked up on some of his subtle mannerisms, how he would take different paths everyday to make it harder to follow him, how he watched his shadow and listened for other footsteps. He subconsciously was learning how to follow it. 

He would creep behind by a few yards, always making sure he had something to duck behind in case Techno whipped around in a panic. Tommy knew that Techno was off his game, there were multiple times Techno shoved absolutely heard Tommy trip over his own feet but it was like he was preoccupied.

Tommy followed him through the third and fourth rings, trying to avoid the random dogs scuraging around in allies and rubble scattered across the ground. 

He bit his tongue to stop himself from yelling ‘Hypocrite!’ as Techno climbed through a gap in the fence and started off into the forest, the vines around the fence swooshing in his absence.  
Tommy’s hand clenched into fists, he had been told since he was little that leaving through the fence was a horrible thing done by horrible people without any regard for the safety their town tried so hard to provide. But Wilbur had claimed to do it before and now Techno had and they weren’t bad people, if he went through would he be a bad person?  
Techno had said that the duels were illegal but were they out in the forest? Were multiple people breaking the law?

His nails hurt his palm as he tried to decide on what to do, Techno was getting farther by the minute but if he wasn’t able to catch up with him then he would be lost with the monsters.

He shoved his fear back in the box in the corner of his mind and raced through the gap and vines and into the unknown. 

He had to know, if Techno wasn’t going to the duels then where was he going?

He spotted Techno’s threadbare white shirt through the dark foliage and rushed towards it only to find quietly navigating a forest was much harder than the familiar city streets.

Leaves and twigs crunched under toe, one rustling bush sent shockwaves throughout the whole forest, there wasn’t the familiar bustle of the town to help drown out any accidental loud noises. Randomly, Techno took a sharp turn and started towards the mountains. Stepping over roots and pushing away vines, Tommy followed. This was becoming much more than he thought it would.  
Techno stopped close to the base of the mountain, looking around once more before jumping into a small cavern Tommy didn’t even notice was there. He inched closer, trying to peer in only to see Techno disappear through an inky purple veil.

In a panic he jumped into the hole and into the ink after his brother only to find himself in a world of heat.

He stumbled away from the veil, half falling, his knees and palms scraped against hot, sharp, scarlet terrain. Tommy jumped up, trying to orient himself, the whole world was warm, the sky was a dark foggy red with bright bubbling lava sploshing at the edge of a pool. The distance screams and grunts of monsters filled his ears.

He blinked against the dust, eyes watering and chest burning, as he desperately scanned the wasteland for his brother. 

Tommy was barely able to spot him against the unrelenting red but once he did he raced towards him, wanting to feel comfort of being with him, he knew Techno would protect him. He didn’t know what was outside the passage or in here but Techno was here so he’d be safe with him.

Tommy couldn’t seem to catch up with him though, between dodging away from monsters and making sure he didn’t fall into lava holes he was pretty distracted. 

Then he saw a massive dark structure over a lake of lava, balls of fire dancing across the sky, monsters walking along the paths, and Techno was heading right towards it.  
He was half tempted to call it quits and just say Techno had absolutely lost it but they were already here so he followed anyway as they shuffled along a sharp edge before jumping onto the dark bricked structure and climbing down a staircase. 

Techno continued until he was out in the open, closer to the balls of fire, he pulled out his sword and slashed at one. Tommy watched in awe, stayed back in the hallway, he had never seen Techno fight before. The teen twisted and turned, slashed and blocked, like it was an art.  
His movements were calculated and strong, he managed to grab the drops of whatever he was fighting and still keep the other monsters at bay.

Tommy was so caught up in watching him he almost didn’t hear a familiar crackle of bones behind him. 

Suddenly he launched himself sideways, narrowly missing the sword of a wither skeleton shambling up behind him. Tommy screamed, rushing out into the open, away from the hallway, towards Techno.

“Techno!”

Techno whipped around, face dropping when he saw Tommy.

“Tommy- what-what the hell are you doing- how are you- why are you-”

Tommy grabbed onto his sleeve, cutting him off, “Techno there is a wither skeleton!”

His eyes narrowed, pushing Tommy behind him, Techno ran towards the monster, their swords clashing, he disarmed it, sword clattering against the brick. Then sent a hard kick to it’s chest and knocked it over the edge.

Tommy relaxed only for Techno to throw his sword right past his head. He shrieked again as Techno ran in front of him, yanking his sword from the body of one of the fire monsters to ward off the others.

“We need to get out of here. Right now.” Techno said sharply. “This is no place for a child!”

“Oh shut up! You’re just a teenager-”

“Tommy!”

“Right! Right!”

Tommy nodded, ducking behind Techno as he stabbed another monster then grabbed Tommy’s wrist, dragging him back towards the stairs.

They rushed up, taking two steps at a time, Tommy trying to stay close when they reached the top Techno swore loudly. There were three more wither skeletons blocking their path.  
Tommy felt like his heart was going to pound out of his throat.

“Stand back Tommy, it’ll be alright.” Techno put a hand on his chest. Tommy swallowed nervously.

“How? There are three fucks right there!”

Techno licked his lips, looking back at him with barely concealed fear. “Cause I neva die.”

And despite the situation Tommy found himself smiling.

It didn’t last as Techno stepped forwards, taking two of the mobs at once. Tommy stood there frozen, trying to figure a way to help when one started for him, he tried to back away when a fireball shot past his head.

He yelped, trying to dodge away from the fire and the withers prying claws. He heard Techno yell his name but everything was starting to blur together in a red hazy mess.  
He lashed out, knocking the monster across the face, he cheered, ignoring the pain in his knuckles. The monster sloppily lunged at him again.

Tommy jumped back only for his foot to slip as he realized he was at the edge of the structure. He grabbed at the skeleton in a blind panic, desperate for anything to grab onto.

The skeleton was pushed away as Techno shoved it hard, shooting forwards he yanked Tommy against his chest. 

Tommy felt an arm wrapping around his ribs, holding him tightly against his brother's chest as the ground slipped beneath their feet and they plummeted towards the lava.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have a good period of existence in the universe!


	5. Coming Clean

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Techno's hidden story is coming apart at the scenes and he has to confess what he had been doing

Techno had been in many, many, stressful situations. He had trained for days on end, been left out in the forest without a weapon as punishment, been beaten down in duels, and spent half of his time running around the Nether.

But nothing scared him more when he turned and saw Tommy running at him, wither skeleton in tow, in the middle of a fiery red hellscape.

No no no.

Tommy was not supposed to be there.

He had to get him out of there. And he almost did. 

Then they fell.

That’s how Techno found himself clutching his brother against his chest, sword jammed in a pillar of the fortress, suspended over lava, holding on for dear life.  
Pain radiated through his arms but he held on tighter, for a moment he was worried he was going to bruise Tommy but decided that was better than dropping him.  
His chest felt tight, he didn’t know how he managed to catch them and if he’d be able to hold on. Tommy wasn’t faring too well either.

“T-Techno, I’m-I’m gonna fall-” He gasped, clinging onto Techno shirt, pressing his face against his collarbone.

“You are not going to fall.” Techno swallowed nervously, trying to wrack his brain on what to do. They couldn’t climb up, there was nothing for them to try and land onto and for a split second Techno wondered if he should’ve let them fall.

It would be better than delaying the inevitable, then having to hear Tommy’s panicked cries as they were scorched-

No. 

That wasn’t going to happen.

He couldn’t do that to Tommy or Wilbur or Phil.

Then it hit him.

“Tommy! Tommy I know how we can get out.” Tommy looked up weakly, eyes wide, he was shaking.

“I need you to reach into the pouch on my belt and grab an ender pearl,” He tried to look reassuring.

“It’ll get us to safety, you just have to throw it and it’ll teleport us to wherever it lands!”

Techno scanned around them, looking for a safe place, the top of the structure wouldn’t be good, the skeletons were still up there, the path they took was too high to safely reach, then he noticed a patch of flat land close to the trail they used to get to the fortress.

“Tommy, see that flat land over there, we walked up there earlier -that’s where you gotta throw the pearl over there and we’ll be okay.”  
Tommy looked up tentatively from Techno’s shoulder only to jam his face back.

“No no no I-I can’t do it,” He mumbled, Techno tightened his grip.

“You shouldn’t have too but Tommy this is the only way-”

“No no- I can’t do it- like I physically can’t- I’ll- I’ll miss the throw.”

“Tommy you have the best pitch of anyone I know-”

“Can you do it?” Tommy interrupted and Techno thought his chest might break. He wasn’t whining or complaining, it wasn’t laziness, it was fear.  
Fear that he wouldn’t be able to make, that he would fail.

“Tommy I’ve seen you throw baseballs so much farther- I know you can do it. You shouldn’t have to but please, I’m holding us up. I can’t do it, I would if I could but I can’t.”  
Tommy didn’t speak, Techno could hear the lava bubbling loudly. Tremors rattling his arms.

Finally; “Which pocket?”

“The one against your knee- don’t worry-” He swallowed nervously, “I got you.”

Slowly one of Tommy’s hands released its iron grip on Techno’s shirt and inched down to the pouch and fumbled with the clasp.

“Okay- okay I got this.” Tommy whispered, running his fingers along the pearls cool surface. “Where am I throwing it?” His voice still shook but his eyes had a familiar, confident, glow.

“Right over there,” Techno gestured with his head, “It’s that flat land before the path to the fortress.” He squeezed him in an attempt at reassurance. 

“You got this big man.” Tommy gave him a genuine, weak, smile before shifting to get a better look.

“Can you count me down?”

Techno nodded, gripping the hilt of his sword tightly, “At the count of three.”

Tommy reared back his arm.

“One, Two, Three-”

Tommy threw the pearl as Techno jerked his sword out of the crevice of the pillar. He briefly felt wind whipping through his hair before landing roughly on the netherrack.

He didn’t let go of Tommy until he was sure they were far from the lava.

Tommy looked around wildly, eyes wide, “Oh my god, we did it! We’re okay! We survived- holy shit I didn’t think we’d make that.”

Techno pushed himself to his feet, “We aren’t in the clear yet.” He grabbed Tommy’s hand and pulled him up then procured a dagger from his belt.

“Hang on to this- don’t be stupid with it- I’m gonna get us out of here and you are gonna answer a few things.”

Tommy frowned “Well-”

“Nope, shut up.”

“Aw, you’re mean again.”

Techno rolled his eyes then started down the familiar path towards the portal, Tommy right on his heels.

“First off, how the fuck did you get here?” Techno asked, scanning the vancity. 

“Uh, I followed you idiot.”

“Why’d you follow me?”

“You’ve been attacking really weird lately and I wanted to know what was up.” Tommy said simply, trying to flip the knife between his fingers.

Techno sighed, of course Tommy would follow him, he was a noisy idiot, a well meaning, but noisy, idiot.

“You’re so stupid.” Techno grumbled, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Okay you are a bitch! This is what I get for caring about you- you stupid bastard!”

Techno scoffed, stepping over a large red root.

“Now if you are done with your interrogation I have a few questions for you! Starting with: What the hell are you doing here?”

“I’ll explain it to you later.” Techno said curtly, the adrenaline and anxiety had worn off and he was just tired. He didn’t know how he’d explain this to Tommy, he couldn’t ask him not to tell the others but he didn’t know how he’d explain it to them. They weren’t supposed to find out.

“Well I just almost died! So I’d appreciate knowing what the fuck is goin’ on! I missed school for this!”

“Hang on, you skipped school?” Techno turned to face Tommy, narrowing his eyes.

“Yeah- It’s like the middle of the day!” Tommy scoffed, “What else would I be missing?”

Techno groaned and tried to focus on getting out. They were getting close to the portal, coming up on a more open patch of the forest, when Tommy tapped on his shoulder.

“Techno!” He hissed, “What are those things?” He gestured towards the group of Piglins, who were starting to notice their present, pulling out their weapons.

“They’re Piglins, don’t bother them and you’ll be fine-” Techno froze when he realized Tommy didn’t have any gold.

He pulled the pin off his chest and clipped it to Tommy’s shirt.

“Tommy straight ahead is the portal that’ll get you back home-”

“Why’d you give me the pin?” He poked at the gold.

“So they don’t attack you-”

“What-” 

“Stop asking questions and move!” Techno groaned, shoving Tommy forwards. Tommy looked stuck, like he was trying to decide if he should follow orders or protest. He seemed to make up his mind once Techno clashed swords with a piglin.

“Wh-”

“Tommy go!”

Techno watched in relief as Tommy pushed past the piglins, rushing towards the portal, sneaking glances behind him. That was one problem solved.

He didn’t want to stay for long, he had to get Tommy home, but more piglins started to clammer towards him, waving their weapons wildly.

Techno blocked an attack from one, pushing it away he tried to take note of his surroundings. There were five piglins, he could take that if he had to but it wasn’t ideal, he disarmed another, kicking it’s  
sword away.

Sweeping his hair from his face, he shot to the side, figuring he could loop around. He wasn’t prepared to fight, his arms were still sore.

Jumping over another massive tree root he ran into familiar flat land, the piglins grunting angrily in the distance.

His boots clicked against the netherrack as he veered off again back into the crimson forest. He weaved through the trees when something chomped on his leg.

Looking down Techno saw a baby hoglin chewing on his ankle, it reminded him of Tommy. He shoved it away with his foot, it squealed and scurried off and Techno continued jogging towards the portal.

The portal was in sight and Techno almost let himself relax until he heard thundering steps behind him. He whipped around just in time to be plowed into by a Hoglin.

It’s tusk hooked into his shoulder and set him flying back. He crashed into the netherrack, he could already feel blood running down his arm.

Scrambling to his feet he grabbed his sword as the hoglin let out a guttural screech and charged at him. He swung at the it, slashing it across the face. It screeched again and Techno turned on his heels and ran, diving through the portal and tumbling out the other side.

Tommy shrieked as Techno turned and kicked the ignition out of the portal, panting, trying to ignore the hot piercing pain radiation through his shoulder.

“Oh my god- you’re bleeding-”

“I’m fine I’m fine.” Techno put up a hand, eyes drifting over to the gash. It was deep and stretched from his shoulder down part way to his elbow, still oozing blood.

“What do you mean! You obviously aren't!”

“Well I’ll be fine soon but we need to start heading back home. I can’t believe you followed me out here!”

“I was worried!”

“Sure.” Techno grumbled, walking towards the opening of the cave, he gestured for Tommy to follow him then cupped his hands and managed to boost him out.

After climbing out himself they started the trek home, Techno tried to twist his blood stained shirt around the wound to keep dirt out.

Tommy switched between a stream of incessant babbling and questions to quietly poking at the different plants and bugs in the forest. 

The wind wasn’t sharp on their walk back, it was gentle and cool, a nice feeling after the Nether. Tommy stopped him twice to show him a weird flower or extra tall tree.

They were close to the fourth ring when Techno stopped, putting a hand to Tommy’s chest, scanning the fence and tree line, before quickly pulling them through the hole in the fence.

The shooting pain in his arm was still going strong as Techno and Tommy shuffled through the town, taking longer paths so people wouldn’t question Techno’s bloodstained arm.  
It was getting to be late in the day when they finally reached their home, trudging up the rusty creaking staircase to their apartment. Techno hoped he could try to bandage the wound before anyone else got home.

Techno unlocked the door and they were immediately jumped by Wilbur and Phil, more so Tommy.

“Oh! You’re okay!” Wilbur sighed in relief, shoulders still tense as he checked over Tommy for injuries.

“Yeah I’m fine!” Tommy grumbled, shaking Wilbur off, Techno snorted.

“I was worried, Phil got a call at work saying you didn’t show up to school!” Wilbur cried, “Where even were you?”

“What the fuck- Techno what the fuck happened to your arm?” Phil’s panicked voice sliced through their conversation and Techno’s brain short circuited. 

“Techno what the fuck!” Wilbur grabbed at his arm but Techno jerked back.

“I’m grabbing the first aid kit,” Phil went into the kitchen and started rummaging through cabinets, “Go clean that thing!”

Techno rolled his eyes, secretly grateful someone would be helping him, and went into the bathroom. 

He pushed back the ripped parts of his sleeve and splashed it with water, watching as the little rivulets of watered down blood trickled down his arm. 

After patting his arm dry Techno went back out and sat down at the table where Phil immediately began poking and prodded at the gash.

“You took him to a duel, didn’t you?” Wilbur asked, glaring at Techno from across the table where he was seated with Tommy.

“No, the little gremlin followed me.” Techno hissed, glaring back just as hard as the disinfectant was rubbed against his cut.

“Well where were you?” Wilbur shot back, checking Tommy over again.

Techno bit his lip, there wasn’t really any way he could hide this, even if there was then there wasn’t a guarantee that Tommy wouldn’t blab about it.

He took a deep breath, “The Nether.”

“You were what-” Wilbur started when Tommy added;

“He was fighting flying balls of fire and those skeleton things, the ones that attacked Tubbo!”

“You were- wait okay let me get this straight- you were fighting wither skeletons?” Phil asked sharply, looking Techno up and down.

“Uhhhhh,” Techno paused, “Yes?”

“What the fuck is wrong with you? You know that their poison is deadly!”

“What the fuck were you doing in the Nether?” Wilbur snapped, “Why was Tommy with you?”

“Both of you stop! Just wait and I’ll tell you!” Techno said, waving one of his hands.

“This is gonna need stitches.” Phil said under his breath, Techno sighed.

“I was in the Nether getting potion supplies for the Captain.”

“He makes potions?” Phil asked before starting on Techno’s stitches. Techno dug his nails into his knee to distract himself.

“He’s started and sells them in secret, I get the ingredients and he makes them, sells them, and we split the profits.”

“Oh so this is another thing to fuel your ego earning?” Wilbur grumbled, “Another dangerous thing for you to get a high on? To stroke your pride?”

“That’s not why I’m doing this asshole-”

“Then why are you?”

“To get more money, ya know, that thing we need to survive!” Techno pressed his nails into his knee even harder.

“We can get by just fine without you trying to prove you’re a god or whatever-”

“Guys-” Phil started only to be yelled over.

“I didn’t do it for me!”

“Yeah-”

“Listen, that's one of the only reasons why Tubbo is still alive!” Techno snapped.

Wilbur paused, “What?”

“When Tubbo got poisoned they were going to do the milk remedy but the wounds would’ve been too deep for him to survive after the shock of the withers and getting over the sickness without a healing  
potion.” Techno flinched as Phil continued weaving the stitches.

“The Captain was talking to me about and then I talked to Skeppy and got to a portal he has and got the ingredients. Then we talked and decided to keep going to get more money for both families, so,” Techno trailed off, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly, “That’s what happened with that.”

Wilbur gave him a look he couldn’t place, it almost looked bittersweet-

“You did it for Tubbo?” Tommy whispered, breaking Techno’s thoughts.

Techno nodded, throat dry. Tommy looked down before mumbling something that resembled a thank you.

Techno felt Phil wrapping a bandage around his arm, once he finished he leaned back in his chair.

“That was,” he trailed off, “A lot.”

Techno swallowed, feeling light headed, none of this was supposed to happen.

“Okay so Techno,” Phil rubbed his temples, “I know I can’t talk you out of going back to the Nether but I’m gonna try-”

Techno shook his head, “Nope.”

“I figured,” Phil sighed, “Then please invest in something to keep you safe in there.”

He turned to Tommy, “But you are never going back in there, ever.”

Surprisingly enough Tommy didn’t object.

“This has been an eventful day,” Wilbur commented, and Techno fought back the urge to laugh. He didn’t even know.

Phil nodded when Tommy jumped up, “Wait I need to grab my backpack! It’s outside!”

“You left it outside?” Phil asked, voice heavy.

“Yeah but it should be fine, I left it under a dumpster so nobody would steal it.”

Phil stared at him for a long moment before sighing loudly, “You’re lucky I tolerate you child, come on, lets go get your bag.”

He stood up slowly and followed Tommy to the door, leaving the apartment in silence.

“You know you don’t have to do that shit,” Wilbur said, voice barely above a whisper.

“What?”

“The duels, the Nether trips or whatever, you don’t have to do those. You can find something safer, I’ll help you.”

“Why? I’m fine with doing those things, I don’t mind-”

“Well I mind!” Wilbur snapped, cutting him off, “I know you don’t care about yourself but we do.” 

Techno didn’t respond, there was a lump growing in his throat.

“Techno you don’t have to do all these crazy things to make ends meet. I don’t want to see you die because of this shit, please get it through your incredibly thick skull that we care about you.”

He reached across the table, fingers brushing against the back of Techno’s hand.

“I know I can’t convince you of a ‘job’ change right now but please think about it.”

Techno grabbed Wilbur’s hand and nodded, murmuring in agreement.

The rest of the day was hazy, they didn’t mention the Nether visit. Techno had tried to talk to Tommy about it in private but he’d just shake his head, saying he was fine. Techno didn’t know if he’d ever want to talk about it. 

He didn’t question or mention it when his door cracked open late at night and Tommy crept into his bed for the first time in months.

He was still going to go to the Nether, they were finally getting to a more stable place and he couldn’t throw that away. That Nether trip was hell but Techno had learned a few things.

He wasn’t sure what the future had in store but he knew he’d be able to protect his family from it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiii so this isn't my best work but I hope you enjoy!!  
> There is more info on my Tumblr!  
> And as always, have a good period of existence in the universe!


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